Unpleasantly Restored
by LoneDesolateWriter
Summary: Post HOO, forced into his 11 year old body, Nico reluctantly goes to Hogwarts to destroy the Philosopher's Stone. Before he even gets inside the castle, Nico makes some unplanned enemies, expected friends, and dramatic entrances, much to his dismay. So much for discreetness...
1. Chapter 1

Nico slid into an empty compartment. The son of Hades had been several minutes early, if the emptiness of the train was anything to go by. He had been sent as a quest for Hades to destroy the philosopher's stone along with the blessing of Hecate so that he could properly blend in. In addition, he'd been returned to his 11 year old body, and it irritated him greatly. Fortunately, all of his powers were intact. He absentmindedly watched various wizards and witches bounce around outside, excitement flowing in their veins.

Within minutes, the train was bustling with noise. In fact, two people just opened the door to his compartment. There was another presence, one that Nico couldn't identify, but he shook it off. One was a boy with the most messiest hair Nico had ever seen, and another was a boy with red, orange fire like hair. The black haired boy was scarily similar to Percy Jackson, and it freaked Nico out.

"Hi, do you mind if we sit here?" the red one asked.

Nico waved his hand as if to say, "go ahead". The two sat across from each other, both grinning wolfishly.

"So are you really Harry Potter?" the orange inquired, voice full of curiosity.

Nico perked slightly at the name. Harry Potter, the one Tom Riddle was targeting, the one that had survived death. The one his dad sometimes grumbled about. The one forcing a backlog of paperwork and jams. Nico was about to kill two birds with one stone, as he was almost certain Riddle would come back to finish the job on Harry.

Harry pushed up his hair with his hand and exposed a bright red scar in the shape of a lightning bolt. Nico looked at it and immediately felt what had bugged him. A tiny piece of Riddle's soul was in Harry. He felt it peacefully resting in Harry, unable to be taken out without death to the host. How unfortunate. Nico really didn't want to kill Harry to kill Tom Riddle, seeing as it will anger Hecate very much.

"Cool!" the orange one exclaimed. "I'm Ron. Ron Weasley."

The boy turned to Nico and asked, "Who're you?"

"Nico di Angelo," he replied.

Just then a cart rolled in front of their compartment. An array of sweets Nico hadn't seen before lay atop the cart, their dazzling colors making his mouth water. Nico shook his head to clear it, and slumped against his chair.

"Care for some sweets, kids?" the lady asked, voice light and sweet.

Harry looked back at the two and smiled, "We'll take the whole cart."

The lady looked surprise for a moment, but quickly regained herself and dished out the entire cart to them while Harry gave her a large bag jingling with coins. Ron eagerly dug into the chocolates and Harry quickly followed. Nico politely declined, as he wasn't hungry. They shrugged and continued to eat.

Silence, save for the sound of food being devoured, stretched on until the compartment door slid open once more to reveal a girl with bushy brown, gold hair.

"Have any of you seen a toad?" she asked, every word clear and precise.

They all shook their heads "no", and Ron pulled out his wand.

"Are you doing magic? Let's have at it then," the same girl said, sitting down next to Ron who then pulled out his rat.

Ron took a deep breath and recited, "Sunshine, daisies, butter mellow, turn this stupid fat rat yellow."

Nico stifled the urge to smile as he heard the "spell" worthy of Apollo.

As the rat stayed grey, the girl rambled, "Are you sure that's a real spell? I've tried a couple at home and they've all worked for me. Nobody in my family's able to do magic, so it was quite a surprise when my letter came. I hope I'm good enough, I've read all of the course books, and I've heard Hogwarts is the best school of witchcraft there is. Oh, by the way, my name's Hermione Granger, and who are you?"

Nico widened his eyes at how much she resembled a daughter of Athena and how much she reminded him of Annabeth, bright, young, and smart. He saw out of the corner of his eye, Harry and Ron exchanging fearful glances, most likely about if they were good enough.

"Ron Weasley," Ron muttered.

"Nico di Angelo," he chimed in.

"Harry Potter," Harry said.

"Are you really?" Hermione asked. "I've read about you in a couple of books."

"Books, really?" Harry said, dazed.

"Of course, anyway, do any of you know what house you're going to be in? I've been asking around, and it sounds like Gryffindor's the best. I hope I'm in it, I've heard Dumbledore himself was in it, anyway we better keep looking for Neville's toad. You three better start changing, we're almost there."

Hermione left with a swish, and the three boys looked at each other.

"All of my family's been in Gryffindor. I don't know what'd they say if I weren't," Ron sighed.

"What other houses are there?" Harry asked.

"Well there's Gryffindor, the brave, Hufflepuff, the loyal, Ravenclaw, the smart, and Slytherin, the cunning,"

"Wasn't Vol- I mean, You-Know-Who in Slytherin?"

Ron nodded, "Yeah, cunning's just another word for evil. All of the evil wizards and witches come from it."

Nico frowned slightly as he listened to their conversation. He toyed with the hem of his jacket. The two boys started talking about "Quidditch", but he tuned them out. The son of Hades wondered what house he would be sorted in, perhaps he'd be put in the notorious Slytherin. He thought that Slytherin couldn't be all bad, there must be at least some good witches and wizards in it. Just then, the compartment door slid open once more, but this time there was a blond haired boy flanked by two large bodyguard like boys.

"It's true isn't it? You're Harry Potter," the blond gestured at Harry.

Harry eyed the two bulkier boys, "Yes."

"Crabbe, Goyle," the pale boy said carelessly, "And my name's Malfoy, Draco Malfoy."

Draco looked over at Ron and scowled, "Oh, a Weasley. My father's told me all about them, red hair, freckles, and more children than they can afford."

Ron frowned just as Draco turned to Nico and asked, "And who are you?"

"Nico di Angelo," he replied nonchalantly.

"Di Angelo? Where are you from?"

"America."

"Why come here?"

"School's better."

Apparently satisfied, Draco Malfoy addressed to Harry and Nico, "Good, you'll both find that some wizarding families are better than others. You don't want to go making friends with the wrong sort. I can help you there."

"No thank you," Nico refused just as Harry said coolly, "I think I can tell who the wrong sort are, thanks."

Draco narrowed his eyes, "I'd be careful if I were you. Unless you're a bit politer you will go out the same way as your parents, Potter. And di Angelo, you're going to want to start out somewhere good. You hang out with these people, and they'll rub off on you."

"Say that again," Ron threatened, face red.

"Going to fight us, huh?" Draco sneered.

"No," Nico said, causing everyone to look at him. "They aren't worth the effort."

"Scared, huh?" Draco taunted as Nico gave off a cool air of indifference.

"We're not scared!" Ron angrily yelled.

"Oh really?" Draco scoffed as Goyle forced himself into the compartment.

Ron hurriedly ducked as Goyle swung his fist at him. Eyes wide, Harry stood up and held off Goyle, as Ron turned to face Crabbe. Several uneaten sweets flew into the air as the boys struggled and fought. Nico stood, waiting for the perfect opportunity to help his new acquaintances. Draco stood, pleased in the background, watching his goons fight. Ron ran out of the way when Harry somehow managed to push Goyle across the compartment and into Crabbe. The force knocked the wind out of the two students, and a frown encased itself upon Draco's face.

Harry and Ron smiled at their triumph, but Nico saw the imminent sign of danger as Draco pulled out a brown stick, a wand. Halfway through his incantation, Draco lifted his wand just as Nico stealthily twisted said arm behind the blond boy's back. Draco dropped the wand in shock, and Ron picked it up.

"What is going on in here?" a familiar bushy haired girl cried out.

Nico dropped Draco's arm as Hermione Granger stood in the hall, a look of surprise on her face. The compartment was a mess, sweets were strewn across the floor and the other boys had light streaks of blood on their faces. Malfoy scowled at the sight of Hermione.

He waved his two bodyguards over and warned darkly, "My father will hear about this."

Nico sighed. _So much for avoiding trouble_, he thought. Malfoy then pushed roughly past Hermione and left.

"Those two came in here, and tried to beat us up!" Ron muttered.

"Over what?" Hermione asked.

"Over nothing! They're Malfoys! The Malfoys are always evil, they were one of the first to come back after You-Know-Who disappeared. Said they'd been bewitched, my dad doesn't believe it,"

Hermione frowned and shook her head, "I'll tell the teachers, but I can't believe it, term hasn't even started yet and you've already found trouble. You'd better change into your robes, we're almost there. You don't want to get into anymore trouble now, do you?"

She left in a flurry of bouncy hair. Ron glared after she left. Nico looked out the window and saw that indeed, the train did seem to be slowing down. The sky was a rich purple, dotted with vast forests and large mountains. He wondered how Hogwarts looked like. The trio changed quickly into their robes, and Nico frowned at how impractical they were. Long and heavy, they hindered his movements greatly. He'll probably trip over them several times. He saw that Ron's robe was slightly shorter than him while Harry's and his own fit perfectly.

An announcement came overhead, saying that there were five minutes until the train official docked. Nico looked around and saw that Harry and Ron had matching looks of anticipation. He himself felt slight excitement, but his face betrayed no emotion. He blamed the sudden, bubbling excitement as a side effect of being in his 11 year old body.

They bumbled into the hall along with all of the other students. Nico grimaced at the sheer amount of people. They hurried out into the darkness of the night, and Nico exhaled, finally away from all of the people. The other students shivered in the chilly night, but he reveled in the familiar air. A lantern suddenly cast light onto all of the students.

"Firs' years! Firs' years over here!" a booming voice directed.


	2. Chapter 2

Nico glanced up and saw a large, hairy human creature. Seeing that Harry eagerly went to greet the large man, Nico followed. They followed the man called "Hagrid" to a shining lake. Nico's breath immediately hitched as the students climbed onto the boats. He stopped in the middle of the crowd, and several students bumped into him.

He hastily whispered, "Sorry."

He looked around as the crowd slowly dissipated onto the boats. Three plans formed in his mind. He could either get in boat and hope to Poseidon that he won't drown, get in the boat and dump in a couple of drachmas but increase the chance of being discovered, or he could shadow travel past the lake. The third option won, and he backed off into the trees, hoping no one saw him.

He watched the students depart from inside the woods and into a tunnel in the cliffs. Nico didn't know where the tunnel went. He had an idea of where it went, but he didn't know if it would be enough to successfully shadow travel there. _Too late now_, he grimly thought. As he was about to depart, he noticed something silvery flowing from the woods. Curious, he followed it deeper into the forest. The liquid curiously stank of death, and Nico couldn't remember why it seemed so familiar.

The liquid ran deep into the woods as if forming a river. Finally, Nico found the source of the liquid. The silvery substance flowed out of a pure white horse. Nico's eyes widened. It wasn't an ordinary horse, it was a unicorn. Innocent creatures created by accident. He'd heard they were the result of a spat between his dad and Poseidon. A horse with the blood to defy death - at a terrible price. Nico thought they were extinct, but the gleaming white creature proved him wrong. The unicorn had a look of absolute terror, and Nico couldn't help but feel sorry for it.

He bent down to inspect it, and an arrow suddenly pierced his outstretched arm. He felt a slight snap of bone, and a sharp stabbing pain raced up alongside the familiar course of adrenaline. His head whipped up and another arrow pierced through the air, thankfully missing where his neck had been. He hissed in pain and drew out his sword with his left hand. Of course he had to get into trouble before school started.

"Your kind is not welcome here," a loud voice stated.

Nico turned toward the location of the sound, "I'm going."

A black centaur galloped out of the shadows. Nico frowned. This was one of Chiron's brothers. Their faces were different, Chiron's soft and wise while this centaur was hard and wild. He doubted the centaur was as friendly as Chiron was. His grip on his sword tightened.

"Son of Hades, you understand death well, do you not? It's a natural occurrence, drinking unicorn blood only delays it. And a demigod so young," the centaur muttered.

Nico frowned. His scent must've gave his secret away, but it didn't explain what the centaur ment. Surely he didn't think Nico killed and drank the blood of a unicorn. The sudden arrow pointed in his direction said otherwise. The stabbing pain in his arm reminded him of the arrow still stuck in it. The centaur showed no emotion. Several plans fluttered through his head. He tensed, ready to move as the tension sharpened. The throbbing pain dimmed and his senses heightened.

Suddenly, there was a sound in the bushes, and the shadows wrapped itself around the centaur. The black centaur was nearly invisible in the shadows, but Nico knew that he wouldn't move. The centaur twitched, but the shadows held on. Nico walked closer to the centaur, and the bushes rustled again. The shadows enlarged and engulfed the forest. Sweat poured down his face as he manipulated the shadows like a silent shield. His breaths came out ragged, and he braced himself.

"Bane? Oh, hello young demigod. I did not think we would meet so early," said a massive centaur.

Nico turned toward the newest centaur. It was as large as the other one, but it came a calm air of sorts. He brandished his sword, ready to attack. The shadows swirled around impatiently.

"Firenze! I have found the unicorn killer, he is this boy right here," Bane told.

Nico froze and said, "I didn't kill the unicorn."

The tall, black centaur known as "Firenze" glanced over Nico, "I do not believe he is the killer, Bane."

"Demigods go around, causing enough trouble as it is. This son of Hades is no different."

"Son of Hades, let Bane go, he will do you no harm."

Nico hesitated. Another centaur? He wondered if he should trust the centaur, but something in him believed he could be trusted. Plus, he was getting tired of controlling the shadows. He released his hold on Bane and staggered. The world spun and he gripped his head, before realizing he moved the arm with the arrow in it. He grimaced.

"Look at him, he is still young, how could he kill a unicorn? He can barely hold himself up," the voice of Firenze observed.

Nico distantly heard a gruff of agreement, and a hand helped steady him up.

"We are not to interact with them," Bane hissed.

Nico ignored the two as he stood up, half leaning on the centaur. Things were starting to clear up.

"Come, I'll take you to Hogwarts," Firenze said quietly.

Nico shook his head, "I can get there myself, you two can find out who killed the unicorn."

Bane, satisfied with Nico's refusal, turned and left. Firenze sighed and went after him, but not before glancing several times toward Nico. Nico knew that the next time they meet, it wouldn't end as peacefully again. The dark haired boy waited for the sound of their steps to fade, and closed his eyes. He willed the shadows to engulf him, and he disappeared in a smoke of darkness. He reappeared in the forests next to the castle. The thought of a long nap greatly appealed to him. His muscles ached, and the arrow was still in his arm.

Nico scowled. Pulling it out now would cause further blood loss, but it would attract less attention. Besides, there was most likely a nurse of some sort ready to treat him. He grit his teeth. Pulling the arrow out would be devastating. Instead, he closed his eyes and focused the shadows to form around the arrow. Slowly, he extracted the arrow from his arm. It felt like a hot knife was scraping away the inside of his arm, and he bit down on his tongue to keep from crying out. His arm tingled as the arrow was removed and dropped on the ground. Warm, iron blood started flowing out. Nico quickly ripped off a piece of his robe and made a makeshift sling for his arm. The pain sent dots to his vision. It was like a papercut compared to the pain he'd endured before, but it still hurt viciously. Nico shook his head and returned his mind to the task at hand. He blocked out the pain and gazed upon the wooden doors of Hogwarts. He took a deep breath, and opened the doors.


End file.
